I hated watching Syd go through that.

“Apparently she saw Marcus out with my replacement and let him have it right in the middle of a Sonic parking lot,” Syd replied.

A laugh erupted in my chest. “What? Really?”

She nodded, smiling a little. “Yep. When she got home afterward, she called and said she saw Marcus eating hot dogs and looking happy about burning in hell for his sins.”

“Oh, good Lord. Your mother.”

“I know.”

We both started laughing.

Syd shrugged. “Anyway, she said she’d like to meet Brian, and I thought we’d go up Saturday and maybe spend the night and come home late on Sunday. I want to show Brian where I grew up.”

She sounded disappointed, even though I knew she was bursting with joy inside about her mother coming around and possibly wanting to rebuild their relationship.

I reached out and took her hand, giving it a squeeze. “This is way more important than dinner, hon.”

Syd smiled. “I’m glad you think that,” she replied softly. “I think so, too.”

“We’ll skip a week. No biggie,” I assured, releasing her and grabbing the glasses I’d just filled. “Or maybe I’ll host it. That could be fun.”

“I’m sure Jamie would think so.”

I turned my head and looked at Syd, keeping a straight face while she offered up a gleaming smile and bright, knowing eyes.

“You need to spill the beans,” she added, stepping closer and pressing her fingertips to her mouth. Her voice raced with excitement.

“None to spill, hon. And I got tables.”

Syd narrowed her eyes. Her hands fell, revealing the smile she was still wearing. She held her hip with one hand and lifted her other to point at me. “You had a sleepover with Jamie McCade. I know you did. And you’ve been mysteriously quiet the past few days, which leads to me thinking you’ve now had several sleepovers with him.” She tipped forward, hand flattening on the bar and voice lowering when she added, “You have so many beans to spill, they are practically coming out of your eyeballs.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I returned, playing dumb as I stepped out from behind the bar.

I glanced at her as I walked past. She wasn’t smiling anymore. She was grinning. Big-time. Typical. Team Jamie all the way.

Shaking my head, I left her goofy grinning ass standing there and carried the drinks to the customers waiting on them. As I was checking on another table, giving them more napkins before they had the chance to request any, movement at the front of the restaurant caught my eye and I looked up.

Jamie walked up to the hostess podium and greeted Kali, who was standing there. Then his eyes met mine and held while he continued speaking.

My heart became one of those cartoon drawings with the arms and legs, waving at Jamie while it jumped up and down fanatically.

He was wearing a bright yellow O’Neill tee and cargo shorts. Typically, when Jamie came in here for lunch, he’d be wearing a pair of board shorts, either getting ready to give a lesson or coming from one. But I knew he had that interview this afternoon so I was figuring that was the reason for the shorts he was wearing. And even though he’d finished with his lessons for the day, his hair was definitely still damp. It had extra curl and looked darker at the roots.

I knew he smelled like sunscreen and the summer breeze, but a huge, pressing part of me wanted confirmation on that. My face buried in his neck would provide that confirmation.

After Jamie claimed a vacant booth in my section, I walked over, pen and ticket book at the ready.

“You know what you want?” I asked, skipping introductions and now beating Syd out on goofy grins, I was sure of it. I had to be taking the cake on the one I was currently wearing.

Jamie grinned back, head tilting to the side and arm coming up to lay across the back of the booth. “Yep,” he replied.

“What?”

“That sweet fuckin’ mouth.”

I scrunched my nose up and shook my head, telling him, “Ah sorry. I think Nate took kissing off the menu last week.”

“Yeah? It ain’t a special today?”

Lips pressing together, fighting yet another goofy grin, I slowly shook my head.

“Right.” Jamie kept his grin. He didn’t fight it. “I’ll take two spectacular tits in my face and a handful of that ass, babe.”

My eyes widened and a giggle caught in my throat. He was completely serious. I just knew he was.

Face burning, my stomach fluttering, and my heart reaching out, no longer waving but wanting to touch, I asked him, “How about I just surprise you with something?”

“Fine by me,” he replied. “Not really here for the food today anyway, so it don’t matter.”

I held his eyes for a breath, wondering if I’d ever seen a pair so blue, then scribbled down Jamie’s order, which I’d decided was going to be the BBQ chicken biscuit since I knew he liked that. With extra sauce.

“I’ll be back with your drink,” I said, looking up.

“I’ll be here,” he said back, smiling, looking happy and making me want that kiss, right here, out in the open in front of everyone.

I quickly spun around before I lost all of my sense, and made for the kitchen, ticket ripped off and pinched between my fingers.

“Here you go, Stitch,” I said, sliding the paper across the metal lip of the window, then once I got the head jerk, meaning he’d heard me even though I was speaking to his back, I spun around and grabbed a glass and the bottle of grenadine from beneath the bar.